Phew!
I drove a dagger meant for storage into Ian’s heart.
Heart reset.
The basic principle is similar to a defibrillator. You stop a malfunctioning heart, then make it beat again to return to normal.
Like turning a computer off and on again, a brain melted down by gacha coming back to its senses after checking on a lost manuscript from a cloud backup, and barely making the deadline.
Aren’t there many similarities? In this case, it’s the same.
If there’s a flow problem in the blood, just stop the heart that creates the flow and start it again.
The distorted blessing will weaken as the heart breaks, and the wounds can be healed before dying. We’re in a temple, so it shouldn’t be too difficult.
…But this simple conclusion seems hard for others to understand.
“G-goddess! Bestow your grace upon the injured!”
“Jonah, are you crazy?!”
With a horrified shout, Karen began casting recovery divine magic, while Lydia shoved a potion into Ian’s mouth with a scream.
Thanks to their perfect responses, Ian quickly recovered, but…
“No, what will you do if you heal him before the blessing is lifted? Prepare again, because we’ll have to do it again.”
“What do you mean you’ll do it again?!”
“…Explain! Give me a detailed explanation!”
The gaze they shot me was like I was a madman. Seriously, this was the best plan I had!
Shrugging my shoulders, I spoke up.
“I’ve removed the cause of the problem. As long as you recover before Ian the Inquisitor dies, he should be fine.”
“What nonsense… Huh? Wait a second. No way…”
Karen, who was about to argue with eyes blazing, quickly realized my intention, being the most knowledgeable about divine powers and blessings here.
Muttering something under her breath for a moment, she nodded soon after.
“…I understand. The blessing dissipates with death, so if the heart stops, the twisted blessing residing within it would also disappear.”
“Similar, but slightly different. That refers to complete death. Not the moment the heart stops and the brain stops functioning, but the moment the soul leaves the body.”
“…A person dies when the heart stops and the brain ceases function.”
Karen rebutted with a serious face. I suppose there’s a bit of a difference in common sense here.
“No, it doesn’t happen immediately. There’s a little grace period. If you recover right away in that time, it’ll be fine.”
“Is that really true?”
“Really. So, Ian the Inquisitor isn’t dying and coming back; his heart just stops briefly. This altered blessing is closely linked to the heart, so when the vessel breaks, it will naturally scatter everywhere… Well, a bit will remain, though.”
“You said some remains? Then it can’t be completely resolved.”
“Unless Ian the Inquisitor actually dies and is resurrected, that’s right. But don’t worry. There are ways to handle that too.”
“Goddess… so you had it all planned out.”
“It’s not the goddess, it’s my plan… Anyway, I’m going to tear his heart apart again from now on, so you need to count to exactly five seconds and start the healing prayer without delay, okay? Lydia, please prepare the next potion too.”
“Understood.”
“…Uh-huh.”
The two, who realized I wasn’t crazy, got ready with divine power and potions again. Only after confirming that did I twist the unpicked dagger halfway.
Crack!
The sensation of flesh being crumbled at the tip of the blade.
Ian’s heart was crushed again, and even in an unconscious state, his body began to tremble. Karen reacted, her body jerking at his intense reaction.
“Not yet! Just wait a little longer!”
“Kuh!”
Only after finishing my mental countdown did I pull out the dagger embedded in Ian’s heart.
Swoosh!!
Blood gushed out like a fountain. I shouted while receiving some of it on my not-quick-enough face.
“Now!”
“O goddess! Here lies the wounded lamb! Please show your grace!”
“…Jonah, we’ll talk later.”
Karen, gripping her hands together and reciting a prayer, and Lydia, glaring at me while shoving a new potion in.
I was a bit concerned about Lydia’s reaction, but the important thing was Ian.
Woosh!
Ian was enveloped in a faint pink light. In the blink of an eye, dark purple mist began to rise above the wound on his chest.
With Karen’s concentration faltering for a moment, I shouted firmly.
“Don’t worry and keep going!”
“…!”
Gritting her teeth, Karen summoned her divine power again. Naturally, the purple energy, though dulled, hasn’t affected the same essence of divine power at all.
It simply scattered in all directions and began to be absorbed into me…
“Huh?”
If it was scattered, it should disperse nicely, right? So why is it converging toward me??
I tried to sidestep but the energy clung stubbornly to me. It didn’t seem harmful to my body, but it felt highly unsettling.
I tried to hide in a spot where Karen couldn’t see me, but…
“Ah.”
That seemed to pique her interest, and Karen, with beads of sweat forming, locked eyes with me. Lydia noticed as well.
Oh no.
Just the fact that I know this treatment method could raise suspicions.
It’s just that Karen thinks I’m something like a goddess’s apostle, and Lydia, based on my usual behavior, doesn’t usually react in distress, so I just went with it.
Above all, I was just trying to save a life, right? Even if it raised suspicions, I thought there wouldn’t be any real threat.
…Until I absorb the distorted divine energy unique to One Who Devours the Twilight.
Great, what do I do with this.
As Ian’s complexion brightened, mine grew darker.
I reached into my pocket and grasped the Goddess Statue. If things turn bad, maybe I could just lift this and praise the Goddess of Love?
Wait a minute. One Who Devours the Twilight also believes in the goddess, right? It’s the heresy that’s the problem.
Maybe I should pull out One Who Devours the Twilight: The Sequel here…
Ugh! This is why I didn’t want to come to the temple! I had a feeling I would get tangled up in troublesome affairs! I didn’t expect it to be this kind of problem though!
As I muttered to myself while sweating profusely, it seemed the treatment was complete, as Karen’s divine energy dissipated.
Ian lay sleeping with a noticeably peaceful expression, clearly fully recovered.
…At least it ended without any major issues.
I exhaled in relief and quickly lifted the Goddess Statue.
With both hands, I raised it high above my head, looking like a otter proudly displaying its young.
“Hooray for the Goddess of Love! One Who Devours the Twilight is nonsense!”
“……”
Karen stared at me blankly, unresponsive to my surprise offering, while Lydia stood in front of me with a frantic expression, guarding me.
In that strange standoff, Karen began to sob uncontrollably.
“Indeed. I was not mistaken.”
“…Huh?”
“To receive the tainted divine power and purify it so purely. Surely, Brother Jonah is favored by the goddess.”
“……”
Lydia turned her gaze sharply toward me. But can the quality of divine power really be felt just by gazing at it? Maybe if it were outside of me.
I focused mentally, and I could feel the warm energy spread throughout my body.
Though the minuscule mana near my heart was something familiar yet different. But it felt more reassuring.
Since I only absorbed the remnants, the quantity is small, and I’m not sure how to use it, but having divine power in the first place is beneficial.
It’s definitely a good thing. It is, but…
“Could you at least say something?”
I’m not sure what’s going on, but the Goddess of Love definitely helped somehow.
I glared resentfully at the elevated Goddess Statue, but nothing changed.
Only Karen and Lydia, following my gaze, admired the beauty of the three-star statue.
As I let out a sigh of relief internally, I suddenly lifted my head.
“Right! There’s still one more thing we need to do! Karen, the Inquisitor! Could you open Ian’s mouth?”
“Sure. Like this?”
Without a second thought, Karen stood up and held Ian’s mouth open. I stood before her and pulled out the dagger once more. This time it was the Unicorn Dagger.
Lydia gazed at me with a look of disbelief, while Karen had an expression of absolute trust.
“May I ask what you plan to do?”
“Completely removing the remnants of the curse.”
“What should I do?”
“Just keep that mouth open.”
“Okay.”
Nodding, Karen kept her head nodded while I steeled myself and gripped the Unicorn Dagger tightly with my other hand.
“Ugh!”
The cold blade pierced my palm. I felt the delayed pain and effortlessly sliced the dagger.
Swish.
Blood spurted out of my deeply cut palm, and at the same time, the Unicorn Dagger began to glow as it healed the wound.
Before it could fully heal, I pressed my fist against Ian’s mouth and tightly closed it.
Thud.
A few drops of blood poured out under pressure, passing through Ian’s throat. And then…
Boom!
Ian’s body shone once more, expelling a bit of purple energy… which got absorbed into me.
And then, Karen began to kneel right in front of me.
“A-ah…! The Goddess sheds blood for the weeping children!”
“That’s definitely not it.”
“True mercy ought to wipe away the tears of others with one’s own blood!”
“That’s not it…”
I felt like crying a bit too.
Isn’t it kind of cool to stabilize a blood-related issue by feeding blood? I just threw that in lightly as a setting!
Stop paying attention!
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